Sidney h



(No Model.)

S. H. SHORT.

MULTIPLE ARC RAILWAY SYSTEM.

No. 473,361. Patented Apr. 19,1892.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

SIDNEY H. SHORT, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO THE SHORT ELEC- TRIC RAILWAY COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

M U LTlPLE-ARC RAILWAY SYSTEM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 473,361, dated April 19, 1892.

,Application filed January 8, 1890. Serial No. 336,280- (No model.)

T at whom/iv may concern:

Be it known that I, SIDNEY H. SHORT, of Cleveland, in the county of Ouyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Systems of Distribution for Electric Railroads; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention,such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to an improved systom of electric distribution for electric railways.

The object of the invention is to provide a series of independent blocks or sections of conductor, each independently connected with the same or different generators, and automatic cut-out devices combined with each block or section, whereby an abnormal amount of current flowing through the conductorleading to any one of said sections, due to accidental or malicious short-circuiting of the conductors or other cause, will operate to automatically cut such'section out of operation Without interfering with the flow of current in any remaining sections.

With this end in view the invention consists in certain features of construction and combinations of parts, as will hereinafter be described, and pointed out in the claims.

The accompanying drawing is a diagrammatic representation of one embodiment of my invention.

A represents any suitable dynamo-electric machine, its negative terminal or bindingpost being indicated by A and its positive binding-post by A The trolley lines or conductorsB'B are each subdivided into any desired number of insulated sections, which are preferably arranged so that the breaks in one conductor will alternate with those of the other. Each one of the several sections 0 of conductor B is connected with the positive l')inding-post A by an independent conductor D, while each one of the sections 0 of the conductor 13' is connected with the negative binding-post A by an independent conductor E. WVithin each one of the conductors E is included a safety-fuse F, which is so constructed that should an abnormal amount of current be diverted through it by reason of a short circuit or other cause the fuse will be blown out, and thus open-circuit that particular section and render it inoperative, but without interfering with the flow of current to the other sections of the line.

In the drawingI have represented a number of motors G, G, G G and G receiving current from different portions of the sectional trolley-line. For the sake of illustration we will suppose that the line is short-circuited, so that an abnormal amount of current tends to flow through the circuit in which the motor G is included. Any such abnormal flow of current will instantly blow out the fuse F 1n the conductor connected with the section of the trolley-line from which motor G is being supplied with current and instantly render such sect-ion inoperative, and yet in no wise interfere with the other sections of the line. The current flows from the generator by a conductor to one of the sections of the trolley-line, and from thence to the trolley and through the motor, and from thence back by another trolley, to a section of the other trolley-line and from thence back to the generator. Hence it will be observed that I provide separate and independent trolley-line sections and furnish each section with separate and independent conductors leading to the generator.

Instead of using safety-fuses I may use electro-magnetic cut-outs so constructed that on the flow of an abnormal amount of current through any of the circuits E an elect-ro-magnet will automatically open-circuit such conductor and render it and the trolley-section connected therewith inoperative.

2. The combination, with a generator, of of the other trolley wire or conclnctorwith the twotrolley lines or conductors, each conductor other pole of the generator, substantially as being composed of a series of insulated secset forth. tions, the joints of the several sections of one In testimony whereof I have signed this I5 5 trolley line or conductor alternating with the specification in the presence of two subscribjoints of the sections of the other trolley line ing witnesses.

or conductor, feed-wires connecting one pole T H bIDQI 1 H. SIIORl. of the generator wlth the respective sections i J of one trolley line or conductor, an automatic \Vitnesses: [O cut-out device in the circuit of each feed-Wire, A. B. CALHOUN,

and a series of Wires connecting the sections JOHN C. DOLPH. 

